Couldn't Ask For More
by TakeOneLook
Summary: Part 1 of The Bean Trilogy Race loves Bean, Bean loves... ummm... she's still trying to figure that out! And there's something strangely familiar about her new friend...
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer** Unfortunately, I do not own Newsies, Disney does. I own the plot, Bean, Veronica, and Tom Willer. I am not making any money from this, nor do I have any money to begin with, so please do not sue me.  
  
"Bean, Bean, wake up, you gotz papes tah sell." Jack nudged the girl sleeping on the top bunk lightly, and she rolled over.  
  
"Mrmm," she mumbled. "Whaddya want, Jack?"  
  
"Ya mus be lazier dan me, Bean. It's mornin and ya bettah get down dere bafore dey run outta papes."  
  
"Uggh," Bean slowly rolled outta bed and looked at Jack like he was crazy. "What time is it?"  
  
"Five foity-five."  
  
"Aw crud, dey open in fifteen minutes."  
  
"Dat's what I've been tryna tell ya."  
  
Bean sprung into action. She whipped around the lodging house at record speed, washed up, got dressed, pulled her hair up, and miraculously managed to be out the door by five fifty.  
  
"Wow," Jack marveled as they headed toward the World distribution office, "Even I can't get ready dat fast." He slung his arm around Bean and gave her a brotherly squeeze. Jack had been Bean's family for the past two years, ever since he saved her from the DeLancy brothers. It was right after her parents died in a train wreck.  
  
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"Hey little girly, whatcha doin?"  
  
"I don't dink dat's none a yer business."  
  
Oscar put his hand up against the wall of the building so Sam couldn't get past. "Well I'm makin it mah business." He grabbed her and kissed her so forcefully that it hurt. Sam pushed him away and tried to run, but Morris caught her in his arms. "Why ya tryna run, sweetie?" Oscar asked. "You know you want tah be wit me."  
  
"Uh, no." Sam said indignantly. "All I want is sum food and a corner tah curl up in."  
  
"Oh, but I can give ya so much more." He pushed her up against the building and tried to kiss her again.  
  
"I wouldn't try dat if I were you."  
  
Sam looked up and saw a boy standing there, not much older that herself, with a bandana tied around his neck. He looked like a genuine cowboy.  
  
"Let go of 'er Oscar, afore I soak you and yer brudder both."  
  
Oscar looked at him, then back at Sam, and finally let go.  
  
"Thanks," Sam said quietly as she slipped out of the alley with her mysterious defender. "I wuz startin to get kinda scared."  
"No problem," he replied. "Say, you got a place tah stay?"  
  
"Why?" Sam asked suspiciously, considering what had just happened.  
  
"Well first off, ya look like youze been sleepin on da streets fer at least a week, and second, I happen tah knowz a place dat you can stay."  
  
"Wherez dat?" she asked, still suspicious.  
  
"Newsboys Lodgin' House, dere's a bunk below mine wit yer name on it." He glanded at her, "What is yer name, anyway?"  
  
"Samantha Nicole Parker, an' yers?"  
  
"Jack Kelly, but me friends call me Cowboy." They walked for a while without saying anything until Jack stopped suddenly. "Well, Samantha Nicole Parker, here we are."  
  
Sam rolled her eyes. "Ya don't gotz tah call me by me full name, Jack, jus call me Sam."  
  
"Alright Sam, I'll show ya to yer bunk, den." They walked upstairs into a room full of bunk beds.  
  
"Wow, ya mean dere's dis many boys in one room?"  
  
"Yep, pretty much."  
  
"I dunno whether tah be happy coz I get tah see thoity boys shoitless, or disgusted cuz its gonna smell like da zoo."  
  
Jack chuckled.  
  
"Hey Jacky-boy, dis hea is a no-goils zone."  
  
Jack and Sam spun around to see Race standing there, smirking.  
  
Sam noticed a rolled up sock on the bunk next to her, and wasted no time in chucking it at Race's head.  
  
"Hey what was dat for? Why'd ya bean me in da head?"  
  
Jack laughed. "Hey, dere's yer nickname. Bean."  
  
"I like dat," Bean agreed. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: :::::::  
  
Bean raced toward the gate of the World distribution office. She pushed her way through the growing crowd of Newsies and got up to the front.  
  
"Hey, what's da big idea?" Race punched Beans arm playfully.  
  
Not long after, the gate swung open and the newsies rushed to the distribution window. Bean was the first to make it to the window. "50 papes, iWeasel/i." she said as she slapped down two bits.  
  
"Yer just as bad as Kelly, ya know dat?" Weasel snapped back.  
  
"An dat's a bad thing?" Bean smirked as she grabbed her papers. She was heading out to the street when Race bumped into her accidentally on purpose.  
  
"Oh, sorry." he lied.  
  
"Shore ya are."  
  
"Hey, I don't go no one tah sell wit today, cuz Blink's sick. Ya want tah come around wit me?"  
  
"Well, I usually go around wit Jack while Davy's in school."  
  
"He can live witout ya fer one measly day. C'mon." Race pleaded.  
  
"Fine," Bean gave up. "Hey Cowboy," she called, "I'm ditchin ya fer Race."  
  
"Well dat's good. Less dead weight fer me." Jack called back playfully. As she turned to start calling out the headlines, Bean caught Jack winking at Race. She started to wonder why, but didn't get to complete a full thought before Race pulled her toward Central Park.  
  
By lunch, Bean and Race had sold all their papers and were heading to Tibby's. When they were walking past the pond, Race tried to tickle Bean.  
  
"No! Stop it!" Bean shrieked as she wriggled away. When Race cam after her again she grabbed him by his arms and swung him away from her. As she did this, Race lost his footing and tripped backwards into the pond. The pond wasn't very deep, but it was enough to soak Race from head to toe. He stood up and stuck his hand out for Bean to help him out. When she started to pull him out, Race yanked her in with him.  
  
Bean shrieked. "I shoulda known better'n tah trust you, Race."  
  
Race grinned wickedly and offered his hand to help her up. Bean was standing so close to his face that she could see the tiny water droplets on the eyelashes above his deep gray eyes. Suddenly, she realized that Race was leaning in to kiss her. Not knowing how to take it, she ducked her head and turned away. "We better get dried off er Tibby'll have a fit when we go in."  
  
Race looked at her, puzzled, and said "Yeah, I guess yer right." He stood there for a moment, taking everything in.  
  
When had he started liking Bean? Race wasn't sure. Bean wasn't particularly beautiful. In fact, to the average person, Bean was rather plain looking. She was about 5' 4", had shoulder-length dirty blonde hair, green eyes, an average build, and had exactly eight freckles sprinkled across her nose. Race had counted them once while she was sleeping. 'But once ya get tah know 'er, she's a beautiful person,' he thought. 'So full a life an' fun an' crazy.' A voice snapped him out of his thoughts.  
  
"Yo, Race, are ya gonna come 'er not?" 


	2. Chapter 2

"Yeah, yeah, I'm comin' hold yer horses."  
  
Bean giggled at the irony of Race's comment. Race could always make her laugh. Bean wasn't sure exactly how she felt about Race. He was cute and charming and all, but she wasn't really sure if she thought of him as anything more than a friend. Race, however, seemed to think of her that way.  
  
By the time Bean and Race got to Tibby's they had dried off considerably, but they still got an evil glare from the owner as they sloshed in.  
  
"I ain't even gonna ask what happened." Jack said.  
  
"Well I am!" Mush declared. "What in da name o' Horace Greely did you two do.?"  
  
"I threw 'im in da pond." Bean bragged.  
  
"Yeah, but she fell fer de oldest trick in da book an' I pulled her in wit me." Race grinned mockingly at Bean and she poked him in the side. This resulted in a small poking match, during which Race managed to get his arm around Bean's waist. As soon as Bean realized what had happened, she quickly excused herself to the restroom, leaving Race more confused than ever.  
  
"I don't get it," Race complained to Jack and Mush, "She seems tah like me an' all, but all of a sudden, she starts tah act all goofy."  
  
"Maybe yer bein too forward, Race, try playin hard tah get." Jack advised.  
  
"I thot dat's what goils did, not boys." Race just got more and more confused as the conversation went on. Mush advised him to openly admit his feelings, but Jack kept insisting that it would be relationship suicide. Finally, Race got sick of listening to Jack and Mush argue over his relationship with Bean, or lack of one, and he headed back to the Lodging House.  
  
"Hey, what happened to Race?" Bean asked as she slipped back into the booth.  
  
"Uh, I have no idea." Mush admitted. Jack and Mush were so into their debate that they hadn't even noticed their friend leave.  
  
"So what were you guys arguing about, anyway? I heard mah name."  
  
Jack and Mush looked at each other. "Uh, nothing, no, we weren't talking about you, we were arguing about.." Mush tried to think up something believable.  
  
"Lima beans." Jack blurted out. "We were arguing about whether lima beans were any good."  
  
"Yeah, sure, look you guys, I'm gonna head back tah da Lodgin' House, kay?" Bean whisked out the door of the diner. 'Lima beans?!?' she thought to herself.  
  
"Lima beans?!?" Mush exclaimed. "You couldn't tink a somethin bettah dan idat/i!?"  
  
"Well could iyou/i have tot a somethin bettah?"  
  
"No, I guess not." Mush admitted.  
  
It took Bean twice as long as usual to walk to the Lodging House. She kept stopping to look behind her because she felt like someone was following her.  
  
Thomas Willer was worn out. He slid down against the wall of a building and buried his face and his havds. He came to New York to look for his daughter, Anna. He hadn't seen her for fourteen years, and he was longing to find her. He thought he had seen a girl that looked like her, and he followed her for a long time, but he just couldn't take it anymore. Who was he kidding? How would he know what she looked like? He hadn't seen her since she was three years old. He looked up as the street in front of him became blurry. It took him a moment to realize what was happening. He had started to cry, something he hadn't done in a long time.  
  
"Anthony 'Racetrack' Higgins!"  
  
Race jerked his head up. He wasn't used to being called by his full name. People usually just called him Racetrack or Race, and sometimes 'doity sunuvabitch' when he won ianother/i poker game. "Where did you run off tah at lunch?" Bean demanded.  
  
"I got sick a listnin' tah Jack an Mush arguin' soz I came here."  
  
"What were dey arguin about? I tot I heard dem mention my name." Bean inquired, still wondering. She knew they were definitely inot/i talking about lima beans.  
  
Race decided to come up with something creative. "Kidney beans , but they mighta moved on tah sumthin else by da time you got back."  
  
"Yeah, lima beans." Bean said as she walked over to her bunk.  
  
'Wow,' Race thought, 'I'm good.' 


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Sorry it took so long to update, I've been majorly busy lately!!  
  
Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I don't own Newsies, Disney does. I'm not making any money off of this, nor do I have any money to begin with, so please don't sue me.  
  
**1 month later**  
  
"Ewwwww!" Bean shrieked as she bolted through Central Park. "Keep them away from me!" It was the summer of the cicadas and the newsies were having a ball. As soon as they realized the huge bugs grossed out Bean, she found them in her hair, on her pillow, and anywhere else the newsies could think of. That day's events included chasing Bean around Central Park.  
  
"But it liiiikes you!" Skittery taunted. He grabbed Bean by the arm and pulled her into a deep kiss. He contemplated putting a cicada on her back, but decided it would ruin the moment.  
  
Race looked at the couple with a mixture of anger and pain, the same way he had since the two had started dating a few weeks before. When they broke apart a moment later, and Race saw how Bean looked into Skittery's eyes, his heart broke. The look in her eyes showed complete and total devotion, like she would give him the world on a silver platter if she could.  
  
"Hey Race, whatsa matta?" Bean called out as she settled into Skittery's arms. "Ya look like yer cryin'."  
  
Race's hand shot up to his eye. "Naw, I jus got sumthin in me eye."  
  
Race tried to make it look like he really did have something in his eye, but Kid Blink wasn't buying it. He walked over to his friend. "Race, what is goin on wit ya? Yer actin all funny."  
  
"Itz nuttin, look, I gotta get back tah da lodgin house."  
  
Kid Blink didn't give up. He followed Race all the way back, pestering him with questions. "Whatsa matter? Why were ya cryin? Ya dun usually cry. Sumthin's gotz tah be wrong."  
  
Race kept insisting that he was fine. He stormed up the steps to the bunkroom, hopped out the window to the fire escape, and slammed the window on Kid Blink's finger.  
  
"Ow!" Kid Blink cringed in pain as he pulled his finger out of the window.  
  
Race climbed up the fire escape and sat on the roof. He came up to the roof when he needed to think, which was every day lately. 'What am I doing?' he thought. 'She's happy, so I should be happy, shouldn't I? But I could treat her so much better than Skit could, why can't she see that?'  
  
"RACE!" Race's head shot up when he heard Bean's voice. She always seemed to interrupt his thoughts.  
  
Bean climbed up the fire escape and plopped on the roof next to Race. "Hey babe, whatcha up tah?"  
  
Race's heart jumped through his throat when she said 'babe.' "Um, nuttin, jus thinkin."  
  
"Oh my goodness, Skit is soooo sweet. I can't believe I'm dating him!" Bean sounded like a puppy excited to see it's owner after he'd been away.  
  
"Oh, really, that's nice." Race lied.  
  
"What's wrong wit you?" Bean asked, puzzled. She put her hand on the nape of his neck and played with the ends of his hair. "Ya sound like yer noivus er sumthin."  
  
"No, no, I'm cool." Race fidgeted. He was suddenly very aware of the back of his neck. "So, uh, why dya like Skit so much, anywayz?"  
  
"He's so cute an' sweet an' funny an' he treats me like a princess an' I can beat 'im at cards." Bean grinned.  
  
Race made a mental checklist. 'I'm sweet an' funny an' I'd treat 'er like a Iqueen/I. But I dun know about cute, an' I can beat 'er at cards, but I'd let 'er win.' "Oh, okay." He finally said.  
  
"What is wit you, Higgins?" Bean tried to tickle him, but he squirmed away.  
  
"Don't. Please. Not now." Race said seriously. "I betta get down dere, it's prolly almost time fer me tah turn in." He hopped onto the fire escape and quickly slid through the window into the bunkroom.  
  
Noticing it was still light out, Bean wondered why Race was acting so strangely. "I'll nevah understand dat boy!" she said to herself. Soon, her thoughts turned to Skittery and she went to look for knight in shining armor. 


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I don't own Newsies, Disney does. I'm not making any money off of this, nor do I have any money to begin with, so please don't sue me.  
  
The next morning, Race was wandering around trying to sell his last few papes when he noticed a short girl with curly black hair reaching down into the pond Central Park. She seemed like she was searching for something and was quite upset. He decided to see if she needed help. "Are ya missin sumthin?"  
  
The girl looked up at Race. "Yes, actually I am. The chain on my locket broke and it fell into the pond."  
  
"Can I help ya look fer it?"  
  
"If you want."  
  
Race stuck his hand in to the pond and felt around. When he didn't find anything, he set his papers down and stepped in.  
  
"You don't have to do that." she told him.  
  
"Course I do," he replied. He searched around on all fours until his hand found something metal. He pulled it out of the water. "Is this it?" he asked.  
  
The girl took the locket from Race. "Oh my goodness, you found it!" she exclaimed.  
  
The locket was old and slightly rusty, with a beautiful letter V engraved on the front.  
  
"What's da 'V' stand for?" Race asked.  
  
"Veronica," the girl replied. "It was handed down to me from my grandmother. I was named after her, too."  
  
"Dat's nice." Race said as he turned to leave. "I gotz tah finish sellin mah papes, soz I bettah go."  
  
"But wait!" Veronica called after him. "I don't even know your name!"  
  
"Itz Race," he replied. Seeing the puzzled look on Veronica's face, Race sighed and began to explain. "Actually, the name's Anthony Higgins, but me friends call me Racetrack, on account 'a I hang out at da horse races an I gamble all da time."  
  
"Oh," Veronica said, "Well, Race, would you like to join me for dinner tonight?"  
  
Race thought it sounded suspiciously like a date, and was about to turn her down, but then he remembered that Bean had a boyfriend and he needed to move on. "Sure, where at?"  
  
"Well, I heard there's this cute little diner called Tibby's downtown. We could check it out."  
  
"Tibby's? I pretty much Ilive/I dere!" Race exclaimed. He remembered that Bean and Skittery were supposed to be there that night. It was the perfect opportunity to make Bean jealous, if that was even possible. "How 'bout seven?"  
  
"Itz a date." Veronica grinned at Race in the same way that Bean grinned at Skittery and turned to walk away.  
  
"Whoze da goil?"  
  
Race spun around and was suddenly face to face with Kid Blink.  
  
"Oh, dat's Veronica, we gotz a date tahnite."  
  
"Givin up on Bean so soon?" Kid Blink asked smugly.  
  
Race was shocked. "How'd you.."  
  
"Mush tol' me. You knowz he can't keep a secret."  
  
Race's eyes grew wide. "He didn't tell Bean, did he?"  
  
"Course not. Mush is a blab, not stupid."  
  
A wave of relief swept over Race. "You had me scared dere fer a minute, Blink." He remembered that Kid Blink had asked him a question. "Yeah, I'm givin up on Bean. She's wit Skit, so what's da use?"  
  
"Ya know, dis ain't like you Race. You dun give up so easy."  
  
Race didn't respond. He knew Kid Blink was right. He wasn't really over Bean, he was using Veronica as a distraction.  
  
"Hey, are ya heading tah Tibb's fer lunch?" Kid Blink asked, interrupting Race's thoughts.  
  
"Nah, I still got a couple o papes left."  
  
"Kay, guess I'll see ya latah, den." Kid Blink said as he walked off.  
  
Later that night, Race was in the washroom getting ready for his date, when Bean came up behind him.  
  
"BOO!"  
  
Race jumped. Why did Bean insist on scaring him like that? He turned around. "Heya cutie, whatcha up tah tonight?"  
  
"She's got a date wit me." Skittery interrupted. He wrapped his arms around Bean's waist. "An watch who yer callin cutie," he joked as he kissed Bean gently on the cheek.  
  
Race bit his lip. Watching them still hurt, but since he had his own date that night, the pain wasn't as strong.  
  
"So Race, word on da street is dat you got a hot date tahnight." Skittery said, jerking Race from his thoughts.  
  
Bean looked at Race with interest. "Really?" This was apparently the first time Bean had heard the news, and for a split second, Race thought he saw pain flash through her eyes. "Where ya goin?"  
  
"Tibby's." Race replied.  
  
Suddenly a wide grin flashed across Bean's face. "That's where we're goin, maybe we should double."  
  
Race shook his head. "Nah, I like tah go solo on da foist date."  
  
"When are ya pickin er up?" she asked.  
  
"We're meetin dere."  
  
"Good, you can walk wit us, den." She looked up at Skittery. "Dat alright, babe?"  
  
Skittery shrugged. "Sure, why not?"  
  
After one hour, six poker hands, and Bean changing her outfit eight times, while Skittery and Race insisted she looked fine, the trio headed towards Tibby's.  
  
There was one problem with this arrangement. Skittery and Bean were off in their own little world, gazing into each other's eyes, even though they were still walking forward.  
  
Race cleared his throat several times to try and remind the happy couple that he was there, but his efforts were in vain. Finally, they reached the diner, and Race saw Veronica standing outside.  
  
"Veronica!" he called happily as he raced towards her and greeted her with a hug. "How are ya?"  
  
"I'm great." she said as she gazed into his eyes. She looked as if she were ready to burst with excitement from seeing Race.  
  
"Bye, Race." Bean said as she followed Skittery into Tibby's. She winced slightly when she saw Race grab this strange girl's hand. What had he said her name was? Veronica, that's it. It was a stupid name if you asked her.  
  
Wait, why was she getting jealous? She was dating Skittery. She loved Skittery. She looked at him as she slid into their usual booth, and Race was suddenly forgotten.  
  
So, where ya from?" Race asked Veronica. "I've nevah seen ya round heah bafore."  
  
"Oh, we just moved here from Philadelphia. We live three streets that way," she said as she pointed out the window.  
  
"Oh, dat splains why I nevah seen ya. I know everybody round heah."  
  
"Really? Wow." Veronica said. Race noticed that the entire time they had been sitting in the booth, Veronica had been gazing into his eyes dreamily.  
  
Race wasn't the only person to notice it. Bean glanced across the room and saw the look in Veronica's eyes. For some reason, it made her very uncomfortable and a little angry. Bean looked back at Skittery, who seemed incredibly interested in the meal in front of him. "Hey Skit, are you ready to go?" 


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Wow, three chapters in two days!! You guys are lucky!! Heehee.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Newsies, Disney does. I'm not making any money off of this, nor do I have any money to begin with, so please don't sue me.  
  
**3 months later**  
  
"Ouch." Race ran into one of the bunk beds. He stumbled into the washroom and splashed his face with water. He hated getting up this early, but it was the only way he could see Veronica before he got his papers. He didn't get to see her very much since school had started, so they did everything possible to spend time together.  
  
"Hey Race." Kloppman greeted him as he stumbled down the steps. "Off tah see yer goil?"  
  
"Course I am. Why else would I be up at dis ungodly hour?" Race replied as he stepped out into the street.  
  
-----  
  
Bean slumped down on a bench in Central Park. She had thirty-four papers left and not an ounce of energy to sell them. She was exhausted.  
  
"Excuse me, have you seen my Anna?"  
  
Bean turned around. A tall man with a gray hat and coat was looking at her. He held out a photograph of a young girl, about three years old. She looked very familiar to Bean, but she couldn't figure out why.  
  
"I'm sorry, sir, but I haven't seen her."  
  
The man looked into Bean's big green eyes. He knew. IThis/I was his Anna. He quickly shook the thought out of his head. He couldn't just walk up to a girl and tell her she was his long lost daughter.  
  
"Actually, this is an old picture. She would be seventeen now, around your age."  
  
Bean looked at the picture again. She looked past the wispy light colored hair and into the girl's eyes. They were colorless, of course, but when Bean looked at them, a chill shot up her spine. There was something about this girl, something she couldn't quite put her finger on, and it was scaring her.  
  
The man noticed the stack of newspapers. "Are you a newsie?"  
  
"Yessir." He handed her a penny. "I'll take one." He took the paper and sat down next to her on the bench. "So, what's your name?" he asked, hoping to find out more about the girl who might be his daughter.  
  
"Samantha, but me friends call me Bean. What's yers?"  
  
"Thomas Willer. It's a pleasure to meet you." He offered his hand and Bean shook it.  
  
"Mr. Willer, why are you looking for your daughter?"  
  
"Call me Tom. And I'd prefer not to get into it, but I haven't seen her since she was three years old, shortly after this photograph was taken.  
  
"Wow, ya must miss 'er"  
  
"I truly do." He changed the subject. "So, do you have many friends?"  
  
"Yeah, let's see, dere's Jack, he's like me brudder, an' Race, an' Kid Blink, an' Mush, an' Davey, an' his lil brudder Les, an' Boots an' Snipes, an' Veronica, an'. Wow, dere's so many, I don't tink ya want me tah keep goin. Oh, an' dere's my boyfriend, Skittery."  
  
"Oh, how long have you two been dating?"  
  
"Near four months."  
  
"Well, isn't that nice." He looked at his pocket watch. "Oh dear, I'm late for work, I'd better leave." He stood up and walked off.  
  
"Well, that was interesting." Bean mumbled to herself. Suddenly renewed with energy, she got up to continue selling the rest of her papers.  
  
----  
  
"No! Don't take him! We can't survive without him!" The woman screamed at the three men drug her husband out of their apartment. She collapsed onto the sofa. Her little daughter scrambled up next to her.  
  
"Where's daddy going?" she asked innocently.  
  
"Your daddy is going to be gone for a long time, Anna." she said calmly as she kissed the top of her daughter's blonde pigtailed head. 


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: These chapters are going up real quick cuz they've been written for a while. After about chapter 8 it'll slow up cuz I actually have to write them. Enjoy!  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Newsies.. blah blah blah.. don't' sue!!  
  
This was a good day. Race bounded up the steps cheerfully and skipped over to his bunk. He had sold his usual fifty papers so early that he was able to buy thirty more and still sell out before lunch. He might even be able to go to the racetrack the next night without talking Weasel into spotting him the papers. He was sitting on his bunk trying to remember what time he was supposed to meet Veronica when Bean burst into the room.  
  
"Outta my way!" she yelled as she pushed Snipeshooter into one of the beds. "Move it!" She knocked Jack over, flopped onto her bed, buried her face in her pillow, and started to bawl.  
  
Jack switched into big-brother mode. "Alright, everybody outta here! Bean needs tah be alone!" Jack started to herd the newsies down the steps. Race began to leave, but Bean grabbed his arm before he could go anywhere.  
  
"Stay." she ordered.  
  
Race sat down on the edge of Bean's bunk. Once everyone was gone, Race tried to find out what was wrong. "What happened, B?"  
  
Bean sat up. "Skit dumped me."  
  
Race's mouth dropped open. "What? Why?" he stammered.  
  
"I dunno, why dontcha ask him?"  
  
Race pulled Bean into his arms and stroked his fingers through her hair. Bean started sobbing again. "It'll be okay, ev'ryth'ns gonna be okay," he whispered into her ear softly. Bean pulled away and smiled at him weakly. "Jus say da woid an' I'll soak im so bad dat 'e won't know what hit 'im."  
  
Bean settled back into Race's arms. "I jus dun know what I did tah make 'im dump me."  
  
"Nothing," he whispered into her ear. "There's nothing you could have done tah deserve dat. Any guy dat would dump you is either crazy or stupid, and in Skit's case it's both." Race kissed her lightly on the forehead. "I'll be rite back."  
  
---  
  
"SKITTERY!!!" Race screamed as he stormed down the steps. "Where is dat freak a nature?"  
  
Skittery walked up to Race. "Right heah. Whaddya want?" The truth was, Skittery knew exactly what Race wanted, but he didn't care. He broke up with Bean, and if Race didn't like it then that was just too bad.  
  
"Whydja break up wit Bean?!" Race demanded.  
  
"Dat ain't none o yer bidness."  
  
Race pushed Skittery up against the wall, which was surprising because Skittery was twice as strong as Race. "I'll ask you one more time. Whydja do it?"  
  
"I ain't tellin ya." Skittery tried to break free of Race's grasp, but didn't succeed.  
  
"Look here, Skit, if you tink yer gonna get outta dis room witout tellin me why ya dumped 'er, yer sadly mistaken. I luv dat goil an' she desoives sum answers." Race tightened his grip on Skittery, but then loosened it momentarily. Did he just tell the whole room that he loved Bean? Uh, oh. He better fix that. He quickly tightened his grip again. "She's like me sistah, an nobody but nobody breaks 'er 'art an gets away wit it."  
  
Skittery shoved Race away and slipped out the door onto the street. Race glared at the door as if it were Skittery himself, then ran back up the steps. To his surprise, Bean was standing at the top of the staircase, smiling through a tear-stained face.  
  
"I heard what you said. Thank you." She hugged him. "I love you too, brudder."  
  
Race smiled and kissed her on the cheek. "You're welcome, sweetie." He looked into her eyes and remembered why he loved Bean. She was so beautiful and sweet and funny and. wait, he was dating Veronica. What a time to have a girlfriend. He realized he was supposed to meet her at Tibby's soon.  
  
"Hey, Bean, I gotta go. I'm meetin 'Ronica at Tibb's." He gave her a quick squeeze and raced off to see his girl.  
  
Bean watched Race as he headed down the steps. He was so sweet. Veronica was really lucky. She wished he would care about her that way. Wait, what was she thinking, she had a boyf.. oh, wait, no she didn't. Bean sat back down on her bed and began to cry.  
  
---  
  
Bean crushed through the orange autumn leaves of Central Park. She loved going there when she needed to get away from her life. It had been two weeks since her and Skittery had broken up, and he was avoiding her like the plague. When she tried to talk to him, he would yell something along the lines of 'Stop flirting with me! You're not my girlfriend anymore!' and walk away, even if she just tried to say 'Hi!' To top it all off, Race had been acting strange, too. One minute he looked like he was about to kiss her, and the next he would be blabbering on about Veronica. "It's just so frustrating!" she said out loud.  
  
"It sure is." Bean turned around and was face to face with..  
  
"Tom!" Bean hadn't seen her friend in nearly three weeks. "How's da Anna search goin?"  
  
"Not very well. It's kinda hard when you have an almost fifteen-year-old picture and a name she probably doesn't use anymore."  
  
"Yeah, I see what yer sayin." Bean didn't tell Tom, but she had been having flashbacks ever since she met him. Her parents that died in the train wreck weren't her birth parents, she had always suspected that, but in the flashbacks, she saw her birth parents, and her dad looked just like. Tom.  
  
---  
  
"Nooo! Daddy!" Anna squealed as she looked out the window and watched the police take her father away. Her mother came up behind her.  
  
"It'll be okay, sweetie, we'll make it somehow." No sooner than she had said that, two men dressed in black barged into the apartment.  
  
"We know you told them." the tall one barked.  
  
Anna's mother whipped around. "Are you crazy? Why would I have my own husband taken away?"  
  
"That's what we'd like to know." The two men grabbed her by the arms and dragged her into the apartment.  
  
"NOOO!" she screamed. "HELP!!!"  
  
"We'll come back for the little girl," he said to his partner.  
  
Anna didn't know what he meant by that, but she didn't like the sound of it. She ran through the still open door and down to the street below as fast as her little legs could take her. 


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Hey, I'm taking a poll: If, after I finish the story, you would like me to have an "Author's commentary" chapter to explain some of my thought processes on certain parts, kinda like the director's commentaries on DVDs please say so in a review. (Same goes if you don't want me to) I seriously need to get some of my comments and stuff out, so tell me if ya wanna hear 'em!!  
  
To lazy to do a disclaimer!! See prior chapters if you really want one!!  
  
Oh yeah, and Davey makes his appearance in this chapter (Yay Davey!!)  
  
---  
  
"Happy boithdaay tooo yooo!"  
  
Bean smiled. The newsies could really sing well, except for when they sang "Happy Birthday." They seemed to enjoy butchering the song.  
  
"Happy boithdaay tooo yooo!"  
  
Bean looked over at Race, who had his arm around Veronica, and her stomach turned over.  
  
"Happy boithdaaay deer Ray-ace!!  
  
A glass sitting on the counter shattered.  
  
"Happy boithdaaay toooooo yoooooooooooooo!"  
  
The diner erupted in laughter at the incredibly horrible singing. Tibby's couldn't fit one more person in the building if they tried. All the newsies from the lodging house, Spot Conlon and some of the Brooklyn newsies, and many of the newsies from various sections of New York had all gathered to wish Race a happy eighteenth birthday. Even Dave was able to come.  
  
"Heya Race!" Dave greeted his friend as they spit-shook.  
  
Bean ran up behind Dave and mussed up his hair. He whipped around. "Bean!" he exclaimed, surprised to see his friend. As they hugged, he picked her up and swung her around. "Howya been, doll?" he asked as he set her down. He kissed her lightly on the forehead.  
  
"I'm alright," she replied, then lowered her voice. "I need tah talk tah ya latah, tho." Bean could always talk to Dave about her problems, but rarely got the opportunity. He was a good listener, and always gave great advice. He looked at Bean quizzically, but before he could ask Bean what it was about, Jack dragged him off.  
  
"Ya gotz tah meet dis goil, you two are poifect fer eachuddah."  
  
---  
  
Later that night, Race pulled Veronica into a corner. "Hey sweetie, we gotz tah talk."  
  
"About what?" Veronica asked, with the dreamy look in her eyes that she always had when she was around Race. At first he thought it was cute and sweet, but lately it had been getting on his nerves.  
  
"Yanno, I dun tink dis relationship's woikin out so good fer me. Maybe we should call it quits. I'd still luv tah be frien." Before Race could finish his sentence, Veronica slammed him against the wall and ran towards the door. "Ronnie! Wait!" he called after her, but it was no use. He slumped against the wall, feeling like a rotten person.  
  
---  
  
Bean giggled as she watched Dave try to chat up the girl Jack had introduced him to. He wasn't very experienced when it came to flirting, but this girl didn't seem to notice. She was hanging onto his every word. Bean's entertainment was interrupted when a sobbing pink and black blur zipped past her.  
  
"Veronica!" Bean called out as she ran after her.  
  
Veronica stopped and turned around. "H-hey Bean." she stammered through her tears.  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"Race broke up with me."  
  
"WHAT?!" Bean's eyes lit up with fire. "Why?"  
  
"I didn't really give him a chance to explain. After I realized what he was saying I kinda shut off," she admitted.  
  
"Look, I gotz sum catchin up tah do wid an ol' friend rite now, but as soon as I get back tah da lodgin' house, I'm gettin sum answers. If he dun give me a good reason fer breakin up wid ya, I'll soak im."  
  
"Thank you." Veronica smiled at Bean. "I'm going to go ahead home, it's getting late."  
  
"Alrite, I'll see ya tamarrah, den." Bean turned around to look for David, but there was no sign of him or the girl he was talking to. Suddenly, Bean felt something wet drop onto her head. "Great, it's raining," she muttered. Her thoughts were proven wrong when she looked up and saw David leaning over the fire escape above her. "You reject!! What's wid da spit- bomb? That is so gross!" she yelled at him playfully. She climbed up the fire escape and punched his arm.  
  
David winced. "Ouch, that actually hurt."  
  
"Yer jus a sissy." Bean teased him.  
  
"So what did you want to talk to me about?" he asked.  
  
Bean took a deep breath and began. She told David everything she had been going through in the past few months. She told him about how her and Race has become really good friends and how she thought he liked her, but she didn't know how she felt about him. She told him about her relationship with Skittery, miraculously without crying, but when she started talking about how she thought she was in love with Race, she started bawling. David pulled Bean towards him and wrapped his arms around her. When she finally stopped crying, she looked up at David. "But now that I saw how he treated Veronica, I'm not so sure." David pulled her closer as she started to cry again.  
  
---  
  
Bean was nowhere to be found. Race had looked everywhere for her. He needed to tell her how he felt before he lost his nerve. He walked down the alley by Tibby's, still looking around. He heard a noise coming from the fire escape and looked up. David was standing there with his arms around a girl. 'Way tah go, Davey!' Race thought. Just then, the girl turned her head slightly, enabling Race to see who she was. Wait, what was David doing with BEAN? His eyes filled with tears, Race turned around and rushed out of the alley.  
  
---  
  
Bean stormed up the steps into the bunkroom. Her talk with David had made her feel better, especially when he gave her advice on what to do about Tom and her flashbacks, but she was still angry with Race over what he did to Veronica.  
  
"Race!" she screamed as she entered the bunkroom. "I gotz tah have a lil tawk wit you!"  
  
Race rolled his eyes and stood up. "Whaddya want?"  
  
"How dare ya do dat tah Veronica? She's such a sweetheart!"  
  
"I jus didn't want 'er as a goilfriend. I jus tink o' er as a friend now."  
  
Normally, this would have been an acceptable answer, but looking into his eyes, Bean knew there had to be something more to it. "Dat can't be de only reason, Race. Dere's sumthin else, I can tell."  
  
Race's eyes darted around the room, looking at the other newsies. He knew he needed to tell Bean the truth, but he didn't want an audience. He made eye contact with Kid Blink and cleared his throat. Kid Blink took the hint and started to clear everyone out of the bunkroom.  
  
Once the room was empty, Bean asked him again, "C'mon Race, what's up wit you? You know you can tell me anythin."  
  
Race closed his eyes and took a second to gather up his courage. "I. I. I love you Bean. I always have. But apparently you dun return da feeling, coz I saw you wit Davey earlier." Race turned around and ran down the stairs.  
  
Bean heard the front door of the lodging house slam shut. She walked over to the window and looked down into the street below. Race was sitting against the wall with his face buried in his hands.  
  
Bean felt awful. Race must have seen David hugging her when she was crying. She contemplated going down there and trying to explain everything to him, but decided it wouldn't help anything. Exhausted, Bean crawled into her bunk and fell asleep.  
  
---  
  
Anna was lost. where did her mommy and daddy go, and where was she? After the scary men took her mommy, she ran until she couldn't anymore, and now she didn't know where she was. She tugged on a man's pant leg. "Misser, I can't find my mommy an' daddy." 


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Okay, I decided I just like writing author's notes. So, yeah, um, okay, this is the last pre-written chapter, I'm still working on the ending (There'll probably just be one more chapter after this, maybe two) Anyways, enjoy!  
  
Too lazy to say that I'm too lazy to write another disclaimer. Geez it'd probably be easier to just write the disclaimer now, wouldn't it. but no, I like to do things the hard way!! :P  
  
Yay Chapter 8!!  
  
Okay I'll shut up and start the story now!! (You're probably getting sick of listening to me ramble on, anyways)  
  
---  
  
"Parker. Parker. Parker.. No, no record of anyone by the name of Parker here, ma'am." The lady at the adoption agency shook her head.  
  
Bean's face fell. 'An I thought Davey was supposed tah be smart," she thought. Suddenly, Bean had an idea. "Do you have a file for Anna Willer?"  
  
---  
  
Race kicked a pile of leaves. Where did he get off thinking that he ever had a chance with Bean? She had been avoiding him ever since he had exploded on her the week before. He walked past a jewlery store barely glancing in. After a few moments, he turned around and walked back to the store.  
  
Something in the window caught his eye. It was a silver chain with a small heart pendant on it. It was simple, but not plain, and absolutely beautiful, just like Bean. He knew he had to get it for her, but he also knew he could never afford it. He decided it was worth a try, and entered the shop. He approached the elderly lady at the counter.  
  
"Uh, miss, how much is dat necklace da window?"  
  
The woman stepped out from behind the counter and picked up the necklace that Race had seen. "This one?" she asked.  
  
"Yeah." Race nodded.  
  
The woman looked at the ten-dollar price tag. She knew there was no way this young, unkempt boy could afford it. "Is it for your mother?"  
  
Race looked at the floor. "Don't got no muddah," he mumbled.  
  
"Oh, I'm so sorry. For your girlfriend, then?"  
  
Race's eyes lit up. "I hope so."  
  
The woman nodded knowingly. "Well with this necklace and that handsome face of yours," she pinched Race's cheek lightly, "you shouldn't have a problem. It's five dollars."  
  
Race nearly cringed at the price. He thought about it for a moment. He wouldn't be able to get cigars for a month, but Bean was worth it. He could always steal some from Snipeshooter. "Couldja hold dat fer me 'til I go get me money? I'll be back in half an hour."  
  
"Of course."  
  
Race bolted down the street at record speed, taking down a few people along the way. When he reached his bunk, he dumped out the money from his cigar cup. $1.50. Race looked around the room, a few quick poker hands against Mush could easily win him another two dollars, and he could borrow the rest from Jack and Kid Blink. If not, Kloppman might let him stay a few nights for free if he explained what was going on. Yeah, right, like that would happen.  
  
Twenty minutes later, Race strolled back towards the jewelry shop with $7.00 in hand. Skittery and Dutchy had joined in the poker game, and Race whooped them all. He didn't even need to bum any money off of Jack.  
  
---  
  
Bean stepped out of the adoption agency into the busy street. She finally knew. 


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: The finale!! I think it turned out pretty well!! R&R!!  
  
---  
  
Bean looked around the room, surprised at how many people had shown up for her party. She never realized that she had so many friends. It was amazing to her how she had become so close to so many of the boys in the three years she had lived with them. She was trying to count exactly how many people had come when Jack walked up to her.  
  
"May I have a dance wid da boithday goil?"  
  
Bean smiled. "Of course," she replied as she stood up.  
  
Jack kissed her on the cheek. "Happy eighteenth, Bean."  
  
The pair walked to the middle of the floor and began to dance. One of the newsies had managed to steal a saxophone from a street musician and was getting pretty good at playing it. It was a slow tune, which gave Bean and Jack a chance to talk.  
  
"So, Bean, why you been avoiding Race these past couple a weeks? He's been goin' crazy over it."  
  
"I dunno, Jack, I jus dun know what tah say to him."  
  
"Well, hullo could be a good start."  
  
Bean looked at the floor "Yeah, I guess yer right."  
  
---  
  
Race leaned against the wall outside of Tibby's. He wanted to give Bean her birthday present, but at the same time he didn't want to see her. She had hurt him so much by being with David. 'But if dat's what makes 'er happy, I should back off, rite?' he thought to himself. He saw David turn the corner and start to head into Tibby's.  
  
"Hey Davey, how's things wid yer goil?"  
  
David looked at Race, puzzled. He and Amanda had been spending a lot of time together since they met at Race's party the month before, but everyone knew they weren't dating. "You mean Amanda?"  
  
"No, dummy, Bean!"  
  
Now David was really confused. "What on earth are you talking about, Race?"  
  
"I saw you two tahgether on da fire escape at my party. Youze are datin' arentcha?" David walked towards Race. "No! I was comforting her because she was upset!"  
  
Race looked stunned. "Oh, wow. What was she so upset about?"  
  
David sighed and began to explain.  
  
---  
  
Bean scooted into the booth across from Tom. "You wanted tah talk to me?"  
  
"Yes, I wanted to give you your present." He pushed a flat envelope, about the size of a full sheet of paper, towards Bean.  
  
"Oh, t'anks, I'll put it with de other presents."  
  
"Actually, it's kind of personal and needs an explanation. Could you open it now?"  
  
"Uh, sure." Bean slowly opened the envelope. The first thing she pulled out was a picture of Tom and his daughter. "Aww, dat's such a keyoot picture."  
  
"Pull out the other papers."  
  
Bean did so. It was an adoption record. "Anna Marie Willer. Born November 3, 1883. Mother dead, father imprisoned. Adopted June 2, 1887 by Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Parker. New name.. Samantha Nicole Parker." She kept staring at the page. "I knew."  
  
Tom looked surprised. "How?"  
  
"I..I went tah da adoption agency a few weeks ago tah look fer my file. Dey didn't have anythin' under my name, so outta curiosity I looked for Anna's name, an', well."  
  
"Why didn't you tell me?"  
  
"I guess I wanted ya tah find out on yer own." Bean looked up. "What happened?"  
  
Tom unloaded the whole story. He had gotten involved in a gang of thieves a few years before he met his wife. They started out stealing small things, just to survive, but slowly they escalated to bigger things. Tom didn't like what they were doing, but by that time it was too late. Then, he met his wife, Marie. She begged him to leave the gang, but if he left, the other members would kill him. When Anna was three years old, someone turned Tom in, and the police took him away. The gang thought Marie had turned him in, because they knew she didn't want Tom involved. Tom was released from prison that January, and he had been searching for his daughter ever since.  
  
Bean looked at Tom, speechless. "Woah." she finally managed to get out.  
  
---  
  
Race darted into Tibby's. Now that he knew Bean and David weren't dating, he had to talk to her. He had to give her the necklace. He saw her sitting in a booth with her friend, Tom. He quickly collected himself, and slowly walked towards his beautiful princess.  
  
---  
  
Tom reached into his pocket. "I have one more thing for you," he said as he pulled out a small book, "it's a journal. You've got a writer's spirit, Bean. You should use it."  
  
Bean took the journal. "T'anks. Ya know, ya didn't haf tah gimme dis. Jus knowin I ain't an orphan is enough fer me."  
  
Tom began to say something, but stopped. "There seems to be a young man who would like to talk to you."  
  
Bean turned around. "Race!"  
  
Race blushed, "Hey Bean. Uh, can I talk tah you fer a minute?"  
  
Bean smiled. "Sure." She looked back at Tom. "T'anks...Dad."  
  
Tom grinned at his newfound daughter.  
  
Race took Bean's hand and led her to a quiet spot in the corner.  
  
---  
  
"What is it, Race?"  
  
"Bean, um, er." Race shifted his weight back and forth, looking at the floor.  
  
"C'mon, spit it out."  
  
Race looked up into Bean's beautiful green eyes. He smiled. "Bean, dere's sumthin' I've needed tah tell ya fer a long time. I started tah tell ya a few weeks ago, but dat wasn't da whole story. Ya see, I love ya, Bean, I can't keep my mind off ya. It's like, Bean, twenty-for 'ours a day in my head. Dun ask me why, I've tried tah make it stop a million times, but it ain't workin. I can't live witout ya, Bean, it jus ain't gonna happen." Race pulled the box with the necklace in it out of his pocket. "I got dis fer ya. It ain't nuttin special, but it reminded me of ya." Race realized what he had just said. "I mean, well you know what I mean."  
  
Bean nodded. She opened the box and saw the beautiful heart pendant. "Race, I love it," she whispered as she put it on.  
  
Race smiled into Bean's eyes. "Well, uh, will ya be my goil, Bean?"  
  
Bean smiled back into Race's eyes. "Of course."  
  
The music had picked back up, this time with a stolen trumpet joining in. Race took Bean's hand and led her to the dance floor.  
  
The two danced for the longest time, grinning at each other with giddy smiles. The other newsies watched them, some disgusted, some happy, and others simply relieved that they had finally gotten together and that the drama would all stop for a while.  
  
As the new couple eased into each other's arms for a slow tune. As they swayed to the music, Race whispered into Bean's ear. "Anything you want. Jus ask an' I'll give it to ya."  
  
Bean looked deep into Race's eyes. "I've just found the father that I never had and the love that I've always wanted. Hon, I couldn't ask for more."  
  
**The End**  
  
A/N: You like?? I think I'm gonna add an epilogue and if you're lucky, maybe even a sequel!! Review PLEASE!! 


	10. Epilouge

Bean leaned against a wall as she inhaled the crisp April air. Where was Race? He was supposed to meet her fifteen minutes ago! She sat down and pulled out her journal to write while she was waiting.  
  
iDear diary,  
This has been the most amazing 6 months of my life. I started going back to school after I moved in with Tom, I mean, Dad. It is so hard for me to call him that! I still can't believe it. I mean, after two years of calling yourself an orphan, it's kind of hard to imagine yourself as anything but. Anyways, I also can't believe I've been with Race for 6 months already. It's gone by so fast. He treats me so good.. I mean, well. It is so hard for me to keep my accent out of my writing, but I'm trying. I'm getting a lot better at it too. I can't wait to see Race. We don't see each other nearly as often any more. Where is he? He's always late. I can't believe hi-- i  
  
Bean shrieked. Someone had grabbed her from behind and was squeezing her really tight. Suddenly, that someone kissed her on the cheek.  
  
"Heya, babe." Race greeted her.  
  
"Race, I oughta soak ya!" She turned around and glared at him.  
  
"Aww, you could nevah do dat! I'm too cute tah soak!" He grinned.  
  
Bean groaned. "Keep thinkin dat, Race, keep thinkin dat."  
  
Race looked at Bean's journal. "Whatcha ritin' dere?"  
  
Bean snapped it shut. "Nuttin important."  
  
"I bet yer ritin' bout me!"  
  
Bean grinned. "Yep, cuz yer nuttin important!"  
  
Race stopped for a second to think about what had just been said. "Hey! Ain't ya supposed tah be nice tah yer boyfriend?"  
  
Bean smirked. "Hey, you said it foist, Race."  
  
"Oh, yeah.."  
  
Bean saw Jack across the street. "Hey J-" she started to call out, but she noticed he was with a girl.  
  
Bean hit Race's arm. "What's Jack doin' wit Mooch? Ain't her an' Spot."  
  
Race shook his head. "Nah, Spot was into 'er, but she had 'er eye on Jack da whole time."  
  
"So her and Jack are."  
  
Race nodded.  
  
Bean frowned. "Jack nevah tells me nuttin no more!"  
  
"Well, accordin' tah him, you nevah tell him nuttin, either. He found out t'rough me dat you wuz woikin at Medda's, writin' out da programs."  
  
"Well, I hadn't seen 'im lately."  
  
"Yeah, evah since ya moved outta da boardin' house, none of us have seen much of ya. Not even me!"  
  
"Well, I can't just move back! I promised my faddah dat I'd live wit 'im till I graduate. We ido/i have fifteen years tah catch up on, yanno."  
  
"Yeah, yeah. Yanno, ya don't gotz tah rub in da fact dat you actually got a faddah."  
  
Bean looked at Race. "I wasn't rubbin it in, Race. I'm sorry. Look, I'll move back tah da boardin house after I graduate in June. Howz dat?"  
  
Race looked away. "Whatevah ya want, Bean," he mumbled.  
  
Bean slipped her arm around Race. "Whatz wrong, hun?"  
  
Race shook his head. "Nuttin, nuttin, dun worry about it." He seemed to suddenly snap out of his bad mood. "Hey, ya wanna come tah Tibb's wit me tahnight? You can see da whole gang again!"  
  
Bean smiled. She was dying to see all of her old friends. "Love to! What time?"  
  
"How bout eight?"  
  
"Count on it!"  
  
Race stood up. "I think I'm gonna head over tah Brooklyn an' see whether Spot is depressed or in a fit o' rage ovah Mooch. I betcha two bits it's da fit o' rage."  
  
Bean laughed. "I'd take ya up on dat, 'cept I agree wit ya!" She stood up. "See ya tahnite!"  
  
Race leaned in for a quick kiss. "Luv ya, B"  
  
"Luv ya too, hun." Bean sighed as the couple parted ways. She headed towards her favorite spot in Central Park. She looked up as she walked past the Sun offices. She would give anything to work for a newspaper like that. Ever since Tom had given her that journal, she had been writing constantly. When she wrote, she felt so. free. Like nothing else in the world mattered. She finally reached her favorite spot, the bench where she met Tom for the first time, laid down on it, and began to write.  
  
A/N: I know, it's not very good. It's pretty much just a teaser for the sequel. 


End file.
